Hebei province is speeding up its preparations for the 2010 Shanghai World Expo as Shanghai marks the 100-day countdown to the Expo.

The Hebei Pavilion is scheduled to be completed by the end of March and go into trial operation at the beginning of April, said Zhao Fenglou, director of the World Expo Office of Hebei province.

Its theme is "Charming Hebei, Beijing's Garden", and the 600 square meter pavilion consists of five huge cube-like sub-pavilions. Construction began on Jan 15.

"The construction of the pavilion is picking up the pace,and we are working on the exhibition plan for the Hebei Pavilion," Zhao said on Jan 21.

To solicit advice on the interior of the pavilion, Hebei officials invited Norman McNally, former head of product design at the Glasgow School of Art in Scotland to hold talks with the pavilion designers. Norman has been recognized within Britain and Europe as one of the United Kingdom’s foremost design teachers and educational developers.

Hebei is also creating an online Expo pavilion, according to Zhao Shuhua, secretary general of the World Expo Office of Hebei province.

The virtual pavilion will go online on May 1, and individual virtual sub-pavilions will be built for some of the province’s cities and counties, Zhao said.